I’m putting together an analog system. First on the list was a turntable, I’ve settled on the Denon DP 59L. Now let’s hear from the owners of some panel electrostatic type speakers, not ones you dreamed of owning, ones that you’ve owned and the reason why they were your favorite.
After posting the following, I noticed the thread was 2.5 years old! I assume the OP is set by now. I'll leave my post here, in case it's of interest to anyone.
Has anyone experienced Muraudio electrostatic speakers? if so what was your impression of them?
I heard the smaller Muraudios at AXPONA 2019. These are the ones that cost roughly $20k then. I thought they were very good. The advantage they offered over most stats is a very wide listening area.
I like the way Sanders speakers sound, but they have an extremely narrow sweet spot . . . the opposite of the Muraudios.
I’ve heard MLs once or twice and to me, they lacked body. It could be that newer ones are better; I don’t know.
I have heard Quads with and without DSP in the system and thought they were flatter sounding with DSP. Otherwise, they are a known quantity and much beloved by many.
For 8 years now, I’ve been using a pair of Janszen Valentina P8 speakers. I had them upgraded from the previous version, and most published reviews are under that model number, zA2.1. I like them for their very smooth frequency response, easy placement, good bass, and of course that electrostatic low distortion. So I definitely recommend you give them a try. They are much smaller than SoundLabs, so they will be easier to place in a small room.
Janszen also makes an active version with nCore amplification, should you wish to simplify your system.
Its been a while now but I remmeber an hifi pal of mine had a set of 4 panel Magneplanars set up in his listening room, man that sound was just freaking delicious and one of the best I can remmeber.
I have owned Magnepan 3.6 and now I have Innersound Eros mk 3 with Sanders Sound System’s modifications. I always liked the transparency of planars. Maggie’s were wonderful. I discovered Roger Sander’s 10e speakers at the Denver Rocky Mountain Audio Festival. The transmission line woofer kept up with the electrostatic panel. Organ music shook the walls. Very transparent. Great imaging. In the sweet spot, music comes alive. So so very good. Typically base is lacking in electrostatic speakers. Not for 10e. I was a grad student back then. I could not afford Roger’s newest speakers, but I bought the next best thing. Mine has the same panels as Sanders. The woofer is a little less than the latest Sanders.
That is sad vtaoustatx. My first ESLs were oak Acoustat Xs with black grill cloth. They certainly opened up a whole new world for me. They were also beautifully made except for that stupid fiber board rear panel which I threw away. You really don't need a very big room for them. I used them in an efficiency apartment! Maybe you could convert one of the bedrooms:) Let me know when you want to sell them!!
I've always been amazed with my Acoustat X speakers. Bought them new over 40 years ago. The direct drive servo amps takes the worry out of driving electrostatics. Only negative about these is the narrow sweet spot, but when set up right they are magic. Sadly new home does not have a proper listening room so they will soon be for sale as I will need something smaller.
Further to my earlier post, one of the things that made my Martin Logans outstanding was reducing the rake. The tilt works fine when standing, but when sitting the bass was heavy and muddled the sound.
I have Janszen Valentinas (aka zA2.1). You can read REG’s review in TAS and several others if you want a good description of them. I like them for several reasons:
typical electrostatic low distortion, high transparency
fairly directional, less wall/ceiling interaction
no backwave, so fewer acoustics problems
compact size, not overwhelming visually
full range and well integrated
easy to place
I am quite happy with them and would recommend them to anyone who is looking for what they can give. What they do not provide is a huge soundstage, though they represent what’s on the record at a natural scale. Like many stats, their imaging will be best in the center seat.
Through the years, I’ve auditioned Sanders (great, but bigger), Muraudios (bigger soundstage and sweetspot, but more $$ and ugly IMO), Magnepans (sounded lifeless to me at low volumes), and MLs (years ago, but I found them too "wispy" sounding). I also owned Apogees, which were a lot of fun but far more colored than the Janszens.
My initial answer would be Quads, but I also liked some of the aspects of the King Sound speakers that I have heard at shows. I dislike the Sanders (heard only at shows) and have only heard Sound Labs sound great in one instance.
jd57, you learn something every day. The last time I saw ML-2s was around 1979. There were 6 of them driving the HQD system. That store supplied me with components for my clients 10% off and my own stuff at salesman's comp. Anyway, the HQD system was a nightmare and not many were sold. It was not because of the amps but Quads and Decca ribbons blew all over the place. They sounded great and people tended to crank things beyond the power handling capability of the speakers. The only other dependable components were the Hartleys. Very few people had a room big enough for them.
select-hifi, the tiles are dirt cheap. They are very light. Just one drop of high viscosity cyano acrylate glue at each corner will hold them up. If you put them up alternating the direction of the fins they look pretty cool. Lay things out carefully before you get started. I used a plumb line to make sure I got everything straight. Please let us know how it goes.
Actually, I was reading a post a while ago on DIYaudio.com. It was about the power switch on the ML-2. John Curl answered it and stated that he was not involved in the final layout of the ML-2, he had worked on the project however. Tom Colangelo is credited with the design of the ML-2. I do have a Vendetta Research phono stage however, that was all John.
I first heard the ML-2 around 1980, powering a pair of Magnepan Tympanis. I never forgot that experience. After building my big horn speakers that I talk about elsewhere, I was no longer satisfied with the sound of my Sound Labs. It was then I discovered that the ML-2 was designed specifically for electrostatics, specifically the Quad ESL 57. They are large, heavy, draw 400 watts at idle, and with 400 watts to make 25 watts, you can rest assured they are 100% class A. All of my amps are Class A. They are about 1/2 heat sink by volume, so they don't really get all that warm. I also have a British Fidelity A-1 integrated, another Class A amp that people say is not, and that little darlin' gets HOT. It pulls about 180 watts to make 20, but it does not have the current capability of the ML-2. I found a pair, and yes a lot of caps had to be replaced, but they are every bit as magical as I remember. They returned the Sound Labs to the top of my favorite speaker list again. Actually, I think that is a testament to how well my horn system turned out. It is essentially an Altec Voice of the Theater system with a ribbon tweeter added. And, yes, it is time aligned.
faxer, those look like someone from Apogee decided to start his own company. The construction is very similar. select hifi, If you have not already put some acoustic foam tiles on the wall directly behind the panels. I would think 2 wide and 3 high. They are 12" tiles. This will cut the reflection of frequencies above 250 Hz and usually improves the image quite a bit. There is no reason that they should not image as well as the Apogees. You would think better as there is no crossover.
https://www.parts-express.com/sonic-barrier-fwp122-studio-acoustic-foam-wedge-panel-12-x-12-x-2-black-12-pack--260-547 jdl57 driving those with ML-2s is brilliant. Those are some of the best sounding amps ever made. John Curl designed them, they are straight class A and the shoot way above their power rating. Some people think they switch to AB and keep going but Mark Levinson himself denied it. I think the question should have gone to Mr Curl. That fact that they are going after all these years speaks highly of their construction quality.
I'm glad to see Sound Lab mentioned so many times. I have owned the same pair of Sound Lab speakers, model A-2, for 35 years. They are the smallest pure electrostatic Sound Labs ever made. They are a two way. Even though I have lusted after the larger Sound Labs, I have never felt the need to upgrade because the smaller size is convenient (they are by no means small however) and Sound Labs have a family sound. With the larger speakers you get more and deeper bass, but the bass on my speakers is quite adequate, thank you, and the tonal quality is similar to the other Sound Labs I have heard, which admittedly is not very many. I did get to spend an evening listening to Jeff Rowlands A-1s, the top of Sound Labs line at the time, with the then new Rowland Model 7 amps, and was still happy with mine. Imaging is amazing since they are a true line source. For years I listened to many other speakers thinking there must be something better out there, but finally gave up. It was pointless. I would consider no other electrostatic brand, and would not be without a pair. I drive mine with 25 watt Mark Levinson ML-2 amps. I bought them used in about 1985, and did have the mylar replaced with the then new thinner mylar back in the early '90s.
The GT Audioworks planar speakers are a must audition - they do not have a crossover on the main 6ft. Panel, utilize a proprietary membrane that is neither solely Mylar or Kapton and as a result handle tremendous power effortlessly. They are designed to be mated with either 2,3,4 or 6 open baffle servo woofers. click below video
I have owned Quad 57's, 2805's, 2905's, and Martin Logans. And numerous Magnepans.
The 57's are wonderfully musical speakers. The 2805's are too bright, but can be tuned down easily with a small inductor (like an air core 0.1 H). The 2905's are just right to my ears - another octave top and bottom over the 57's. What is surprising is that the 2905's are no more musically satisfying than the 57's.
Which just goes to show - frequency response ain't what it's cracked up to be. To my ears. If I were doing it again, and if I could get a reasonable deal on nice 57's, I would stack a pair or a triple. The best room I've ever heard uses triple-stacked 57's.
Atom, Those would be 4+4s. BIG speakers. Two subwoofers are not going to be near enough. I use 4 subs with 2+2s. You should put two inside and two outside the Stats preferably against walls. Cross over 100 to 125 Hz. As I said in the post above I will be getting SoundLabs 845s in the hopefully near future. They are the same size as your 4+4s and I plan on using an eight 12" driver array with them. Assuming they are in a room with eight foot ceilings you have full range line source loudspeakers and you are trying to use them with point source woofers which simply can not project power as well. If they sound right at one volume as soon as you turn it up higher the stats will just overwhelm the woofers. If you message me I can send you a picture of what I have in mind.
Hi mijostyn thanks for the compliment. I should have mentioned that the speakers I built are using 8 Spectra panels per side, 4 below and 4 above. I am trying them right now with a pair of Contrabass subwoofers. Not sure if I like them as much with subwoofers. Here is a link about the speakers https://www.diyaudio.com/forums/planars-and-exotics/183168-acoustat-answer-219.html see post 2187. Am planning on trying a row of 33 planar ribbon tweeters per side (22 front, 11 rear).
bdp24, even with neodymium magnets the field strength drops of very quickly. You can increase the magnets deeper front to back but the you start to make the ribbon beam and cause diffraction effects plus the magnets, even the Chinese ones get prohibitively expensive. This may be why the Divas were everybody's favorites and when the humidity was right (joking) they were wonderful and I did live with them for almost a decade but they were fragile, volume limited and lacking in deep bass whereas the 2+2s I have now are indestructible, go loud as h-ll but are still deep bass challenged. After year/decades of piddling around I finally figured out a way to put subwoofers under them but I would never have been able to do it without digital bass management and it would have taken a lot longer without the system I have which allows me to change both high and low pass filters independently on the fly from my seat with a laptop. I have not changed the configuration now for somewhere around five years which for me is a very long Time. The Soundlabs, because they are so wide will produce very deep bass and I believe most people use them without subwoofers but because they are one-way speakers the entire frequency range is doppler effected by the long excursions deep bass takes. My long experience with ESLs of various configurations tells me that removing the low bass from them will increase clarity, banish any volume compression and add perhaps 10dB of headroom. But it will take a lot of subwoofers to make it work. The 845 is a very big loudspeaker. The plan right now is to use eight 12" Morel drivers in four sealed decagonal enclosures made of 2" thick MDF. Nice Winter project (after I finish the kitchen or somebody we know is going to be in big trouble.)
A true ribbon CAN be made in a wide width (Apogee did it), but it's expensive. Such a ribbon is very insensitive, and apparently it's impedance has to be very low (Apogee's sure was). A difficult loudspeaker to pull off, but some consider the Apogees the best they've ever heard. I've never heard one, the best I've heard are imo ESL's, though magnetic-planars have their charms.
@richopp The ML HQD was an interesting look and I assumed that you wasn't suggesting for OPs room, but as a point of interest. I should have put a LOL after my comment.
barbecue with it. It is very fragile compared to other materials but nothing else works as well as aluminum. I tried making a titanium ribbon speaker with titanium foil and neodymium magnets. It worked great until the ribbon started to get warm (higher resistance than aluminum) then it expanded and started flapping and waving all over the place. So much for that experiment. Anyway, the Magnepan tweeter is much more durable that the Diva tweeter was but Magnepan tweeters are blown all the time. Fortunately, Magnepan supports their speakers well.
bdp24- you are absolutely correct. The rest of the speaker is planar magnetic. You can not make true ribbons very wide. Magnetic energy drops off at the square of the distance so you can not spread the magnetism much of a distance. The Diva Mid range which was a true ribbon was a little over an inch wide and that was pushing it.The woofer was planar magnetic. It is also the reason the Maggie tweeter is a bit fragile. The ribbon runs in a "U" shaped extrusion with slots cut in it. Magnets are glued to the sides of the "U" The ribbon is tacked down every other magnet alternating sides with a little glob of blue something or other. The ribbon is aluminum foil laminated to a very thin layer of plastic. Most of you have played with aluminum foil. It bends easily and if you go too far it will crease. If you keep bending it back and forth it will work harden and break. It will break if it gets overheated which you may have seen if you barbeque
Not to pick nits, but the famous tweeter in the big Maggies---3.7, 20.7, 30.7---is not a magnetic-planar, but a true (not quasi-) ribbon. So is the tweeter in the Eminent Technology LFT-8b.
richopp, I am very fond of Magneplanar speakers. I have owned two different models including Tympany 3's and have set them up for at least 6 clients/friends. They are a fabulous speaker for the money and they are relatively easy to set up if you have experience. I also owned Apogee Divas for almost a decade. However, none of the magnetic planars can come close to a full range ESL set up and driven properly. Full range ESLs have to be big and tall, at least 7"10". Only Soundlabs makes a speaker this way now. Smaller versions are OK but will not have the dynamic presence of full sized ones. Acoustat was the first to do it this way. unfortunately, they did not survive. The Soundlabs speaker is significantly better made than Acoustats however both speakers are the most indestructible loudspeakers ever made. You have to drive a stake through them to do any damage. My 2+2s are 39 years old, look and perform as if brand new. Unfortunately, this is not true of Magnepans. The tweeter is the best sounding magnetic tweeter made but it is fragile which is why Magnepan has a great tweeter replacement program. I have used it twice. The rest of the speaker is indestructible. Magnepans require crossovers full range ESLs do not until you get down to the subwoofer. The sound you get is unified in a way no other speaker can match. Add subwoofers and everything goes to a whole new level. Maggies can be improved my subs but the effect is not as dramatic as it is on a full range ESL. I say full range so as not to be confused with hybrids like MLs and Sanders versions. An ESL will sound like whatever you put into it. Whether or not a speaker is bright depends on how they are set up, the recording and the playback volume.
@jhills and mwinkc: I thought the OP asked about both, so sorry if I brought in other panel speakers. To mwinkc, I just used that as an example of a major electrostatic system--it came out in the mid-1970's so would be hard to get today--would illustrate the lengths one may go to to have an electrostatic system that also requires a special tweeter and big woofers. I was not suggesting it would fit in his room, so sorry if that was not stated directly. Mea culpa on that.
My real comment was that while, like most people, I like electrostatics, they do produce an inordinate amount of what we used to call "listening fatigue" after a while at volume. Magneplanars don't, and now come in various sizes, so it might be worth the OP's time to give them a listen in his room as well as the electrostats and see what HE likes best in his room.
Happy listening, no matter what the OP buys. The most important element is being happy with the playback of recorded music of any kind.
They have to do all kinds of music, at least up to 80db, with a closer LP that should be no problem......
i think with the size of the room, the QUAD ESL-57’s sound sound about right, i gotta search out members who would be willing to let me do a live audition. When I was looking for a projector I found a local guy who had one that I was able to check out first hand, hopefully I can find a member in this form or another will be willing to do a live demo
As always, no mention of the Eminent Technology LFT-8b. Like Maggies, a magnetic-planar from 180Hz to 10kHz (push-pull drivers, unlike the single-ended in the cheaper Maggies), an 8" dynamic woofer for 180Hz down, and a ribbon tweeter for 10kHz up. In the 180Hz-10kHz operating range of the dual m-p drivers, there is no crossover/high-low pass filtering! $2499/pr. Reviews in TAS and a couple of the UK mags. As a bonus, it presents an 8 ohm (almost purely) resistive load to the power amp (if bi-amping, the m-p/ribbon drivers are an 11 ohm load), so unlike Maggies can be driven by a modest tube amp, including the Atma-Sphere M60 and Music Reference RM-200.
Another fan of the Sanders 10e. Made a point to hear them at Axpona this year and they were very impressive. On another level I heard the Maggie 30.7’s this past week and they are amazing but not so practical.
Electrostatics have numerous issues...power handling and shrillness on
some recordings. They are good, but tend to be very tiring to listen to
over time and at volume.
This depends, like so many things, on execution. Sound Labs have no problem handling power and don't get shrill. You can play them all day no worries. But I do know what you're talking about- I've also heard ESLs that seemed to me to be a bit bright.
@mwinkc If you follow the OPs earlier posts, you would see that he is quite interested in the smaller Maggies (which, by the way, do fall into the category of being a panel speaker) for his room. I have owned both ribbons and Quad ESLs and quite known the difference, but do appreciate the qualities they share. For myself and other posters here, not to have mentioned the smaller Maggies as a viable choice for his fairly small room, would have been a dis-service. Lighten up.............Jim
I have owned 3.6 Maggies for over 10 years. They have lived in a number of rooms, but based upon my experience, 3.7s might be a bit too big for your small room.
If budget is an issue, the new LRS planars with strong amplification and a sub might be optimal.
How can so many people who claim to be audiophiles and claim to have owned Maggies recommend them to someone looking for electrostatice speaker recommendations? Have you noticed a power cord and a big power supply on the back of your Maggies? :-) In the the right room, in the right place, with the right amp, Maggies are incredible. I’m not putting them down. I’m on my second pair now and they are what I’ve used 90% of the time since the early 80’s. Just asking!
Electrostatics have numerous issues...power handling and shrillness on some recordings. They are good, but tend to be very tiring to listen to over time and at volume.
One of the best, the old Mark Levinson HQD system had two pair of stacked Quad's and a Decca Ribbon Tweeter plus a couple of 24" Hartley woofers (full disclosure: my company made some of the stands and boxes for them).
Magneplanars, on the other hand. IF SET UP PROPERLY, and driven by pretty good hardware, simply disappear and let the music out. No distortion, no "listening fatigue" or other negative qualities. If you love pounding bass, buy a subwoofer or 3, I guess.
Go to your dealer, take various speakers home and have them set-up professionally by the dealer, and make your own decision, please.
Remember, YOUR ROOM is the most important element in any sound system.
We've been in business 43 years. Over that time, we've had lots of customers with ESLs- OTLs and ESLs have been the match made in heaven (sound wise, anyway) since the ESL57 was first introduced.
I've heard a lot of ESLs with our amps at customer's homes and also at audio shows. IME/IMO Sound Lab is the state of the art in ESLs- they play the widest bandwidth and most dynamic range of any ESL made. A recent change in them (about 4-5 years ago) also made them fairly easy to drive.
FWIW, ESLs behave differently from box speakers in that the impedance curve is based on a capacitor rather than a driver in a box (with its resulting resonance). This should be fairly obvious, but the take home is that the speaker is thus best driven by an amplifier that can make constant power rather than constant voltage, due to the opening statement in this paragraph. Since most amplifiers are intended to be voltage sources (example: a solid state amp that can double its power as impedance is halved), they will tend to sound bright on an ESL and also lack bass impact. This is because the ESL impedance curve typically varies by about 9 or 10:1 from the bass frequencies to the highs.
When you get a Sound Lab set up properly, you will find it to be one of the fastest and most transparent speakers made.
Thanks for the info. Mike. Purely from a financial standpoint, am considering the 3.7s over the 645s. Since I don’t listen at loud levels, it might be worth trying the Rogue with the 3.7s. I still have my trusty old high current (200/350W) ADCOM to fall back on for a while, if the Rogue isn’t quite enough.....Jim
I don't want to hijack the thread. Yup, the panels are curved like the ML’s. The total speaker height is 75-3/4” and the panels are approx 13” wide by 65-1/4” tall.
Jim, your Rouge integrated amp will have no trouble driving 645s to a reasonable level probably louder than the Maggies. However the 3.7i is an incredible speaker for the money. It is purely a financial decision. Either speaker will benefit from subwoofers down the road.
@kgveteran For your room and style of music, I believe the Maggie 1.7s or 1.7is with well integrated subs, would be incredible. Over the years I've had many very nice speakers, but developed a particular fondness for stats and ribbons. For many years I had and very much enjoyed a pair of Quad ESL 63s. In my 14' x 26' with 10' ceiling, audio room, I now have the Maggie 1.7s with a very well integrated single ADS sub and the sound is amazing. With a bit of time and attention to set up, the little Maggies can present a very wide, deep, detailed and focused stage - both in and away from the sweet spot. I'm considering moving up to the larger 3.7i, or possibly the Sound Lab 645s, but that would mean a need for more power and the 1.7s sound so very good driven by my 100W Rouge integrated tube, I'm not sure the gain would be worth the cost. I can not imagine that you would be, in any way, dissatisfied with the Maggie 1.7s in your space. There are a lot of good suggestions here for various other very good speakers, but If you do choose the little Maggies and would like some helpful suggestions on set up, feel free to PM me. The idea that ribbons and stats can not image out of the sweet spot is not true.......Jim
I own ESL63s and have enjoyed them for about 5 years, even in a "way too small - that will never work" bedroom converted to a listening room. I thunk that room is even smaller than what you are describing. I drive them with an Innersound Electrostatic amplifier.
For those who assert that Quads can't do bass, i can only say that when i got my new Supratek preamp the bass went way deeper. I now use them in a much larger listening room, and their sound has improved.
I entered a high-end music store in the early 1980s in Oklahoma City, just to compare what they had to my great Altec Lansing Flamenco 848a horn and large woofer speakers. These rocked and shook my walls. I was in my early 30s with a limited budget. I saw a pair of tall skinny screens in a frame with a large tubed amplifier attached. I asked what they were and was told that they were electrostatic speakers. They were Acoustat or Martin Logan, I do not remember which. He turned them on and I was blown away. I had never heard any speakers that were so realistic in the midrange and treble. Instruments and vocals were so real I could feel their presence. I had to get them. I asked the price and was told I would have to get the amplifier and the speakers and the combination would cost somewhere between $8,000 and $10,000. I was extremely disappointed because I knew I would never be able to afford them. I left the store and dreamt about those speakers for years. I eventually forgot about them. In early 2017 I was in Best Buy with my wife and saw a section of the store that was labeled Magnolia. It was a Hi-Fi and TV store. We were thinking about getting a new TV so we went in. After a while, I entered a separate room that had a number of speakers with McIntosh and other amplifiers. They also had a pair of tall skinny screens in a frame. I know that my heartbeat got faster, my face flushed, and I froze and stared at my fantasy speakers. All the memories came back and I just stood and enjoyed the Deja Vu. I asked the attendant to connect them and they sounded as good as I remembered and/or fantasied about. The sharpness, clarity, musicality, detail, speed, dynamic range, separation, soundstage, and solid bass were marvelous. I compared them to the Bowens Wilkins 800 D2 and other high-end speakers and there was no comparison. The electrostatics were so much better in every category that was important to me. Even my wife, who has hearing aids, also noticed and enjoyed. Her hearing has gotten progressively worse in the last 20 years. She has been unable to enjoy most music in the last 10 years because the speakers she has listened to were not clear enough. These electrostats changed this. We now listen to concerts and musical shows and she enjoys what she is hearing as well as I do. For me, nothing I have ever heard is better.
I owned the Acoustat 2+2s for many years, and I loved them. They are incredibly revealing and neutral. But I finally sold them and moved to the Martin Logan Impression 11a. I have a large room - 20' x 20'. They don’t play as loud as the 2+2 but are surprisingly balanced and engaging, especially with the right amplifier. I’m currently running a Line Magnetic 518ia on them and there is magic in the combination, more than any of the other half-dozen amps I’ve had on them (from worst to best: NAD M22, Peachtree Nova 300, Wyred4Sound mAmps, PrimaLuna Prologue 7, Pass 150.8, Line Magnetic 518ia). I also own a pair of original Quads (57) running on vintage tube gear. They have a midrange presence that defines their sound, and I love listening to them, but they can’t compete with the ML/LineMagnetic for soundstage and overall presentation of the music.
What seems like forever ago but is probably 25+ years ago I auditioned both a pair of Acoustat 2200 and Acoustat 1100 speakers. The Audio Plus shop advised that if the room wasn't humongous the 1100s would be more focused due to the single panel and would deliver all the volume I could want.. I auditioned a couple of amps with them as the shop let me in the listening room for a few hours to see what I wanted and I bought the Acoustat 1100's and a Sumo Andromeda II A Mosfet power amp. Turns out Acoustats and Mosfet's have a synergistic love affair with each other. When set up at home the base seemed a loose so additional acoustic fiberglass was added to the woofer module, bit by bit, to clean it up, and it did so nicely. After demo of about a dozen different speaker cables I settled on Straightwire Maestro..... and same for interconnects after about ten demos.Here we are 25 years later and they still occupy my listening room of 14 years, fully treated but now bi-amped with two Sumo's rated at 240 into 8 and 450 into 4 & 750 into 2. I've given up bringing in components to try and upgrade and just enjoy my music when I have time. The rest of the system is an Audio Research LS 2 MKII B with remote, a Sony ES 5400 Super Audio player and a Sansui TU-9900 Tuner max modded by Mike at Radio X and a Magnum Dynalab Signal Slueth and half wave mast. It runs all balanced from the CD player through the pre to the amps with custom cables, also by Straightwire. Room treated with bass and mid range circular baffles behind the panels and both side and rear wall treatments.Hope everything goes another 25 years.
Atom, Nice going. Before the Spectra Days Acoustat did make a speaker called the 4+4. It was a 4 panel wide 2+2 and boy did they rock. I probably would have bought a pair if I could have afforded them then. They had two interfaces so you had to use two channels of amplification on each side. I assume you did 4 panels up and 4 panels down so the speakers are 8 feet tall? I'm sure they do bass fine however I would still use subwoofers as they drop doppler distortion and the panels become even more clear and pristine sounding.
Kgvetran - I have owned Maggie’s for over 20 years (MGII, 1.6 qr, 1.7i with DWM base panel now). Obviously, I love the sound of my Maggie’s - mid range vocals are amazing. My current listening room is larger than yours, but I feel the 1.7is would be a great fit. But pleased be warned - you need a lot of power (current) to drive these speakers to get optimal sound. I use class A - Krell at 250 watts per channel into 8 ohms to drive my speakers, and I am happy!!
I owned a pair of Martin Logan Monoliths and truly enjoyed their sound. One problem is, there is a very narrow sweet spot. The other is, I measured a peak high frequency of around 11K. Very unique sounding, but like the sound of a conventional speaker. I like that “in your face” sound. Went to Wilson Max II’s and love them. Would like to be able to have both the Wilson’s and some top of the line Maggie’s, but to accomplish this is a setup nightmare.
I own Acoustat speakers that I put together myself. I owned a number of different Acoustat models over the years and they usually came with extra panels. I kept the extra panels as I sold off the speakers as my listening room situation changed over the years. After my house renovation I had about 16 Spectra panels so I decided to build a pair of speakers that had 8 panels per side, a Spectra 8800, which never existed as a product from Acoustat. Bottom line is it sounds great in my 14 x 18 room, no sub needed.
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